The present invention relates to a security control system, a security controller, a portable device management apparatus, and a security control method used in, for example, vehicles or houses.
Typically, security equipment such as door locks for vehicles or houses is operated by a user using an exclusive mechanical key. Using such security equipment, however, there is a risk of the mechanical key being fraudulently copied or the lock being picked. This would result in unauthorized operation of the security equipment.
In the prior art, a security control system employing electronic verification for enhancing the security level of security equipment has been proposed.
Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication Nos. 2001-289142 and 2001-311333 describe examples of a vehicle security control system designed to perform radio communication between a portable device carried by a user and a security controller installed in a vehicle. Specifically, the portable device transmits to the security controller an ID code signal containing a unique ID code assigned to the portable device. Upon receipt of the ID code signal, the security controller compares the ID code contained in the ID code signal with an ID code registered beforehand in the security controller. If the two ID codes match, the security controller unlocks the door or enables the engine to be started. In other words, the security controller is designed to deactivate the security of security equipment on the condition that the ID code of the portable device matches with the ID code registered in the security controller. Therefore, a third party who does not have the portable device corresponding to the vehicle will not be able to deactivate the security. This enhances the security level of the security equipment.
In such a vehicle security control system, the ID code for the portable device needs to be registered beforehand in the vehicle security controller. Therefore, if the user wants to register an additional portable device as a spare key, the user must perform an ID registration operation to register the ID code of the additional portable device. In general, such an ID registration operation involves a predetermined operation for switching the security controller to an ID registration mode so that the security controller performs communication for registering the portable device. Therefore, when an automobile dealer performs such an ID registration operation, for example, only certain people are allowed to know the procedures for switching the security controller to the ID registration mode.
The security controllers for vehicles in the prior art exhibit a superior anti-theft effect as long as they are used in ordinary circumstances. However, a third party, who knows the procedures for registering a portable device ID code, may be able to fraudulently register the ID code of a portable device. Thus, the vehicle security control system of the prior art cannot always provide sufficient anti-theft effect in such special cases.